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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. rash — hasty
  3. wound — an injury
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. track — a path
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. field — farmland
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. land — a country
  13. rash — a series
  14. wound — an injury
  15. cue — a hint
  16. land — ground
  17. track — to keep track
  18. land — to come down
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. track — a song
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mark — a grade
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cue — a signal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com